Washington State Department of Services for the Blind

Pre-Employment Inquiries

The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) places some restrictions on employers’ pre-employment inquiries of persons with visual disabilities. These restrictions are in addition to the common courtesy to which anyone being interviewed is entitled. The following guidelines* may help you to comply with ADA laws and restrictions during the pre-employment process.

Refrain from asking disability-related questions.

Questionnaires, applications, and tests are often used by employers to determine the competency of the applicant. Keep in mind that, at the pre-offer stage, disability-related questions are prohibited under the ADA. Make sure to ask only questions regarding the information on the individual’s application form. You may ask the applicant what prior job duties he or she performed. Be careful not to ask applicants about visible physical characteristics or their health status. It is not legal to inquire if the applicant has a psychiatric disability, a history of having a psychiatric disability, or if he or she has consulted with a psychiatrist. Nor may questions be asked about past drug addiction.

Keep to the essential elements of the job.

Develop a thorough job description that identifies the essential elements of the job. By relying on this description, both the interviewer and applicant are aware of the essential elements of the job. Employers should also review old application forms to ensure that medical histories are not requested, since this is no longer appropriate.

Be careful when requesting medical examinations.

The law permits a medical examination if the medical evaluation is conducted after an offer of employment has been made. If physicals are conducted, however, they must be conducted for all employees in that job category, and the medical information gathered must be kept separate from the personnel file. Drug testing is not considered a “medical examination” under the law. Therefore, pre-employment tests for illegal drug use are permitted by the ADA.

*Provided by the President’s Committee on Employment of People with Disabilities, 1996.

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